Looking after your cheese

Once cheese is cut it will not age anymore. Contrary to popular myth, you can use cling film to wrap cheese. But you must bind it very tightly to discourage the cheese from releasing its moisture and making the cheese appear sweaty. If that does happen, don’t worry, dab the cheese with a paper towel to absorb any moisture on the surface.

Your Cheese Monger will wrap your cheese in a thin film of wax paper. Yes, the shop has stamped its logo over the wax paper but that’s not why you should keep it in the wax paper. It’s because cheese breathes, it likes humidity. Wax paper allows this to happen. So best not put the cheese into a plastic box in the fridge, it’s better stored in the refrigerators salad crisper.

Cheese tastes better at room temperature. Bring the cheese out and an hour before needed. Before serving remove the wax paper. Some cheese, like Brie, needs to be unwrapped when removed from the fridge. By the time you are ready to serve the Brie, it should have melted and become soft and flow with naturally runny cheese. Perfect to scoop onto a Bath Oliver Biscuit.

Wondered what to do with the rinds and uneaten pieces of cheese? Drop them into a freezer bag and keep them for your next Risotto.

Larger cuts of cheese should keep for up to 14 days if left as wrapped by your cheese monger. Soft Cheeses like Mozzarella di Buffalo may only last 4 days before use. So try to buy your cheese when you know you will need it. Cheese can dry out if stored for too long. Order online and have it delivered a few days beforehand.

Keep the wax papers to use on the unused pieces of cheese. Wrap them snugly and keep in the crisper. If you unwrap the cheese to discover some mould lightly covering the surface, just scrape the mould off; the cheese will be perfect underneath. The best advice is to visually check your cheeses every day.

Cutting cheese. People have written reams on cutting cheese. We recommend that you use different knives for different cheese so that one cheese does not affect another. Some would say its not etiquette to cut the ‘nose’ off a piece of cheese. Will it affect the taste? No.